Captivity

Latter-day Saint theology defines captivity as the restriction of moral agency and spiritual estrangement from God. In the Book of Mormon, this state is frequently personified as subjugation to the “awful monster” of death and hell (2 Nephi 9:10). Mormon Transhumanism expands this definition, identifying biological determinism, disease, involuntary suffering, and mandatory aging as physical manifestations of captivity. Spiritual and physical bondage are inextricably linked. The divine mandate to “proclaim liberty to the captives” (Isaiah 61:1) encompasses both moral repentance and technological innovation.

Agency vs. Determinism

Agency sits at the core of the Plan of Salvation. Embodied spirits who have kept their first estate are subjected to the tests of mortality to see if they will choose liberty and eternal life or captivity and death (2 Nephi 2:27). Captivity naturally follows the relinquishment of agency to systemic oppression, entropy, or sin. Liberation theology within a Mormon context necessitates active resistance against these constraints to promote human flourishing.

This requires addressing the tension between radical materialist transhumanism⁠—which frequently reduces human consciousness to deterministic neurological behavior⁠—and the Latter-day Saint insistence on the uncreated, autonomous intelligence (D&C 93:29). The human intelligence exists independently of deterministic frameworks and holds the innate capacity to direct its own evolution.

Biological Limitations and Morphological Freedom

The mortal condition is a temporary state of limitation. It serves as a necessary phase of experience meant to be transcended. Technology and medical advancements operate as redemptive instruments within this framework. Biotechnology, cognitive enhancement, and radical life extension function as participatory mechanisms in the Atonement’s power to heal. They serve as practical tools for overcoming the physical dimensions of death and hell.

Christ, in his resurrected state, conquered the ultimate captivity of the grave. This event provides the structural blueprint for human evolution and morphological freedom, demonstrating that physical matter can be refined into an immortal, glorified state.

Emerging Technology and Captivity

Innovation simultaneously introduces new risks of confinement. Algorithmic determinism, surveillance capitalism, and attention-economy engineering present modern forms of captivity that directly compromise cognitive liberty. These systems parallel the adversary’s strategy by offering frictionless comfort in exchange for moral and intellectual agency.

Posthuman evolution requires strict ethical guardrails to preserve the human person. Technological advancement must amplify the conscious, relational self. Humanity must ensure its tools do not become “kindly masters” that quietly erode autonomy under the guise of convenience.

The Eschatological Horizon

Humanity holds a divine mandate to act as co-creators in the work of emancipation. We engage in grace-guided science to physically and spiritually unlock the captives. Zion represents the ultimate expression of this liberation. It is an advanced civilization that has systematically eradicated poverty, disease, and involuntary suffering. Building Zion requires the explicit integration of spiritual devotion and technological mastery to achieve a complete triumph over earthly captivity.